2 - The ethnographic context

Summary

Nukulaelae

Nukulaelae is an atoll in the South-Central Pacific, part of the island group and nation of Tuvalu, formerly known as the Ellice Islands. This chain of nine low-rising coral atolls and islands spans 400 miles, between the latitudes of 5°S and 11°S, and the longitudes of 176°E and 180°. The group is situated on the outskirts of Triangle Polynesia, close to the Gilbert Islands (Kiribati), which lie to the north and are the easternmost island group of Micronesia (see Map 1). Tuvalu can be subdivided geographically into a northern group, made up of Nanumea, Nanumaga, Niutao, and Nui (phonemically, Nuui), and a southern group, which includes Vaitupu, Nukufetau, Funafuti (phonemically, Funaafuti), Nukulaelae, and the southernmost and smallest island of the group, Niulakita. This last was not settled permanently until the twentieth century and is used today as copra-producing grounds by Niutao Islanders. The group's total land area is 10 square miles.

As a typical atoll, Nukulaelae consists of an oval-shaped string of islets that surrounds a lagoon and is itself surrounded by a coral-reef ring (see Map 2). Submerged reef platforms and sand bars bridge the breaks between the islets. The entire atoll, including the lagoon, is about 2 miles at its widest and 6 miles long. Even by atoll standards, it is very small: its dry-land area is 449 acres, and its maximum elevation rests a few feet above sea level. It is surrounded by deep seas, which provide rich harvesting grounds for pelagic fish.